Nenam Macharius
by Asmodai
Summary: Nenam must face orcs, dark elves, and the gods themselves for the girl he loves.
1. Home At Last

Nenam Macharius breathed a deep sigh as he sat near one of the large lifts to his home, Kelethin. Kelethin was a beautiful Wood Elven city in the trees, located in the Greater Faydark, the most beautiful forests on Norrath. He thought to himself how many years it had been.....one?.....two?.....too many, he thought as yet another orc on a suicide mission attacked him. With his green eyes closed, and not even moving from his seat, he made the orc pay twenty times over for what he did. Nenam hated orcs, from his first year as an official ranger to now.  
  
Nenam's ears perked up when he heard the whimper of a younger Elf. He could instantly tell someone was in trouble, he uttered the small cry once or twice in his youth. After a split second to pinpoint it, he drew his bow, nocked an arrow, opened his eyes for aim, and let the arrow fly. The arrow flew true, not surprising to Nenam, but rather surprising to the young druidess, even more so to the orc, who was dead before he hit the ground.  
  
The druidess walked up to him. "Hi there," she said, "Thank you so much. I'm Chioke, and you are?" "Nenam, Nenam Macharius," Nenam said with a bow. He noticed something....something in her eyes....but he couldn't put his finger on it. "What are you staring at?" Chioke asked. "N-N-nothing," Nenam stammered, almost blushing. "What are you doing for dinner?" Chioke asked with a wiry smile. "Nothing," Nenam replied "Just eating this fruit and vegetables out here in the forest." "Then how about dinner? At the tavern?" Chioke asked. Nenam almost tripped over his own two feet, even with him standing still. "I'd love to." Nenam said, barely containing his excitement.  
  
Nenam relished seeing another orc laying dead at his feet. He was in Crushbone, home of the orcs that had terrorized the Faydark as long as Nenam could remember. With an additional slash, he cut the legionnaire down before it had a chance to run away. Nenam lived in fighting, ever since the fateful dinner with Chioke a week ago he had been a nervous wreck, except for on the battlefield. "The night was good," Nenam thought as he let an arrow fly into a slaver, "She had a good time." His thoughts jumped to the good night kiss she had given him. It was....different from any other kiss....it...had something. With the temporary lapse of concentration, an orc pawn came dangerously close to breaching Nenam's banded armor. "So close, and yet so far." He thought as the orc became the latest wall decoration.  
  
"Hey you!" Nenam heard as he spun around to kill yet another orc. "Hey yourself." He said to Chioke as she ran up. She had that same...something in her glistening blue eyes, her silky brown hair, and in her unbearably beautiful smile. "How about we have dinner again, at my place this time?" Chioke asked as she put her arms around Nenam's neck. "S--s---sure" Nenam got out of his shaking lips as he put all of his will into not breaking down with excitement. "I look forward to it." Chioke said with a smile as she kissed Nenam gently. Suddenly Nenam felt a very dark presence in Crushbone. He couldn't quite place his finger on it, mostly because he was locked in a rather passionate embrace with the most beautiful woman he's ever seen.  
  
"RUN!!! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!!!" a rather short Dwarf yelled at the top of his tiny lungs as he ran past Nenam and Chioke. "INNORUUK IS COMING FOR US! SEND FOR THE PALADAINS OF FELWITHE!!" Nenam would have just laughed at the young Dwarfs outlandish claim, but Emperor Crush appeared in his throne room window, his eyes set afire with the power of Innoruuk, the god of Fear, flowing in him. "Lets go!" Nenam yelled as he yanked Chioke with him.  
  
"Tunare be blessed," the Paladin said as Nenam passed onto the highest Main Platform in Kelethin. The guild leaders were all gathered, from the Rangers, the Druids, the Rogues, Even the Paladins from Felwithe, the High Elven city, had arrived to investigate this. Nenam met the leaders, and as one of the most experienced in the city, Nenam was given an Officer to the General position. He would fight along his mentor, Maeysn Trueshot. The plans for an investigative team to be sent into Crushbone were cut short with cries from the young adventurers near the hill which the orcs claim as their own.  
  
The cries grew in number as Nenam and Maeysn rushed to the lift closest to Crushbone. The bottom of the lift was clouded with bodies, Elven and Orc alike. The guards were holding their own though. That was, until the Royal Guards came. Nenam witnessed the attack they used before, but not from an orc. The elven guards writhed to the ground, screaming in agony, their bodies blackened and burned by the touch of the Royal Guards. The orcs now had the first lift into Kelethin.  
  
Nenam parried the forceful blow of a Legionarre, and another. He siezed the obvious letdown in the Legionaries guard and shoved the orc off the ledge of the platform. He glanced to the teleportation pads the wizards of Felwithe were setting up. The wizards would have taken longer to teleport parties to Felwithe, so Nenam came up with the idea of using the pads. His thought was interrupted as a crude orc arrow plowed into his helmet, bouncing off of the armor but still sending him off balance. Maesyn appeared at his side, grabbing him and saving his life. Before a word of thanks could be muttered, the orcs were on them again. The fighting was fierce, yet Nenam's thoughts were not on the battlefield, but on Chioke. He lost touch with her as he left for the first meeting with the Paladins. He hoped he would be with her soon, after he killed the....five....no ten....no twenty....no.....too many orcs.  
  
"NENAM" an unearthly voice shouted. The forest was dark, the sounds of battle became dim, everything became oblivious to Nenam as an immense figure approached him. It was Crush, with Chioke draped over his back. "YOU ATTACKED MY LANDS, POISONED MY PEOPLE WITH DEATH AND THOUGHTS OF 'TUNARE' THE SO CALLED GOD. YOU WILL DIE AS PUNISHMENT, AND THIS WOMAN YOU CALL CHIOKE WILL WITNESS IT, BEFORE HER OWN DEATH." Nenam would normally laugh, but Crush's Innoruuk influenced glare made him think otherwise. Nenam drew his axe and put his claws on as Crush dropped the woman he was so concerned about to the floor. With a blood-curdling howl, Crush charged across the platform in very few strides, shaking the entire tree with his steps. Nenam parried one, dodged two, but the third swipe nearly wrenched his arm from his body and flung him to the floor. Crush's immense figure towered over Nenam, the powerful odor making it hard to breathe. Crush raised his crude and rusty axe for the final blow, when he stopped. As Crush turned towards Chioke, Nenam could see the arrow in his armor.  
  
Chioke panicked in the presence of Crush, Nenam saw as he closed on her. She was scared, Nenam could see it in her eyes. His arm with his axe was useless, he would never last in combat with the behemoth closing on his dear Chioke. Nenam took his axe and hurled it with all of his earthy strength at Crush's head. The axe landed true, embedding itself deep into the skull of the orc. Crush paused for a second, then continued. Nenam cursed as he remembered that the brain was not one of the things the orcs can not do without. Feeling brave, or stupid, Nenam charged. Not Crush, but Chioke. He grabbed her and kept running full tilt across the platform. With a quick mutter of prayer to Tunare, he launched himself from the platform and fell the twenty feet or so onto the platform with the pads on them. His legs took the brunt of the fall, he jumped so that Chioke would not be hurt by the fall, but Nenam didn't regret it, even after he felt the lances of pain shoot into his legs.  
  
The citizens were already through the platforms, now the general troops were being sent through. The heat around Nenam began to rise, and the tree tembled, as if filled with fear or dread. The Main Platform, the hub of all communication, and the location of the evacuation pads, was on fire.  
  
Nenam thanked Tunare, his legs were not broken, but sore enough to make him limp. He checked on Chioke, she was good, just exhausted. Nenam made his way towards the pads, as the worst feeling of dread filled his body. The first of the three pads exploded, the second was simply drained of energy. All Nenam saw after that was darkness. He was awake, but could not make out the darkness in front of him. The backhand to his jaw made Nenam realize that it was an orc, a very strong one at that. It was a warlord, standing between the pad and Nenam. "YOU CAN ESCAPE, IF YOU CAN GET PAST ME." the warlord bellowed. Nenam rose to his feet, and knew instantly that he could not fight the warrior, so he would stall. He motioned to Chioke to make a run for the pad, in hand signals the Warlord was too dumb to pick up. Nenam backed off, hoping to lure the Warlord out, which the stupid orc did without hesitation. Faster than his senses could pick up, the warlord was in Nenam's face and holding him in the air by his throat. "DID YOU HONESTLY THINK YOU COULD BEAT ME" the orc roared. "I did!" Chioke shouted as she let loose a fireball at the orcs back. The fireball connected solidly, killing the orc and knocking Nenam to the floor. "You are crazy, you know that!" Chioke yelled at Nenam over the roar of the orcs. "People do crazy things when they fall in love." Nenam said with a smile only a woman like Chioke could bring out in a man. Words weren't needed anymore, Nenam kissed Chioke.  
  
"Lets go," Nenam said after he broke the embrace. Chioke just held out her hand and smiled. As they walked towards the pad, the entire platform shuddered violently as Crush dropped onto it, between the couple and the pad. With one swipe, Crush sent Chioke flying to the edge of the platform. Nenam instinctively lunged for Chioke, all sense of battle thoughts lost, only his love was in control, but Crush caught him by the throat. Nenam flicked his claws into position, and jabbed them into the abdomen of his most hated adversary as hard as he could. Crush laughed and tossed Nenam to the floor, breaking the claws off inside of Crush at the same time. With one kick from the Emperor, Nenam was across the platform. With another, he was teetering on the edge. With the third, Nenam was sent over the edge of the tallest platform in Kelethin.  
  
Crush stomped his way towards Chioke, intending to finish the job himself. The axe from the human was a rather good weapon, he would use it to kill the woman. He lifted the frail thing off the ground and studied it. He pondered the skinniness of the elves, their pointy ears, their hair. He needed to get through that pad, and he might as well finish this job now. As he raised the axe back....  
  
Nenam was lucky to be alive. Who would have guessed there would be a branch, if anything, at this level. Nenam wanted to let go, to be in Tunare's arms, to be free, but he wouldn't let go. He felt warm, he felt inspired, as if the Mother herself was with him. With his new strength, he climbed back up to the platform, where he saw Crush over his love. Nenam was on his feet and rushing across the platform when...  
  
The platform lurched suddenly to one side, throwing Crush to the ground, and sending Nenam skidding across the floor. The center tree was cracking, falling, dying, and at the moment, all three lives were depending on that very tree for theirs. The platform was stable enough so that when Chioke was thrown free, she did not slide off. Nenam was on his feet and in Crush's face before he was up. He kicked the axe from Crush's hands, then delivered one to his gut. But Innoruuk was with Crush, neither had any effect on him, or his ability to send Nenam sprawling. Chioke was up again, crawling for the pad. Crush was at her instantly, but so was Nenam. This time, Crush picked Nenam up by his waist, not his throat, and put his large boot on Chioke, stopping her. The fire in Crush's eyes was pure hate, and Nenam could not look into them. Red energy flowed over Crush's hand, as if he was preparing to use his gift of a deadly touch.  
  
Nenam kicked Crush in the jaw, shouted curses at him, did whatever he could to get his attention, which was achieved almost instantly. Crush roared with triumph as he held Nenam over the edge of the platform. But what Crush didn't see was Chioke throwing the axe at Nenam. Nenam caught the axe, and in one fluid motion, removed the Emperor of the use of his hand. Catching himself on the edge of the platform, he vaulted himself up and over Crush, and cast the most powerful fireball he could muster straight into the orc's face at point blank range. The now former emperor toppled over the edge. Nenam was blown back by the blast of the fireball, landing in view of the pad and Chioke. The pad flickered for a second. "GO!!" Nenam shouted as Chioke looked towards him, "I'll be right behind you, I promise!" Chioke nodded and flashed Nenam that smile she only ever gave him. As she got to the pad, she stood, and was about to walk onto it, when the platform lurched again. It was Crush, hovering over Nenam, minus the skin off his face and his right arm. Nenam's reaction was both in love and in battle instinct.  
  
Nenam rolled backward, kicking Crush backwards towards the edge again. As Nenam's feet reached the platform behind him, he used them to launch himself at Crush. The Emperor was caught off guard, staggering backwards and off of the platform. Nenam twisted around in time to see Chioke step onto the platform, but as she did, the platform blinked out, causing her image to flicker, then disappear. As Nenam feel the 500 or so feet to the forest floor, his thoughts were with his town, with Tunare, and with Chioke.  
  
"Nenam..........Nenam........" the voice echoed. "Mother?? Is that you Mother???" Nenam asked the voice. "No, Nenam, I'm a cleric. Wake up for us, sir."  
  
Nenam's eyes shot open. What was this place? Is this where he would be with his Mother?? No...it was Felwithe....and there was Maesyn.  
  
Maesyn explained the story to Nenam. The rangers found Nenam on top of what was left of an orc, presumedly the Emperor Crush himself. In a way, Nenam owed his life to the orc, but he wasn't grateful. Chioke was gone. Not dead, well, at least no one thinks so. The wizards never received anyone after the last troops were out. She was lost, but Nenam knew she was alive, maybe not here, but somewhere else, another world...just somewhere. He felt it, in his heart. 


	2. Enter Whizbang Dustyboots

His city was over half destroyed. The girl he loved was gone. And he had one hell of a headache. "Great way to start the day." Nenam said as he rolled out of bed. The past few days had been horrible. Kelethin was in ruins, the elegant city of the trees was almost no more. Nenam didn't care, though. Chioke was gone. He painfully remembered the last view of her as she stepped onto the platform, her injured body still holding firm, her mind still set on her task. But that smile....that dammed smile just tore Nenam up now that she was gone.  
  
Maeysn let Nenam take a few days off, killing the Emperor of Crushbone, who was given extra power by Innoruuk himself, was no easy task. That 500 foot fall felt like longer. Nenam's thoughts were interrupted as a small gnome bumped into his knees. "Watch where your going, you fricken giant!" the Gnome squeaked. "Yeah yeah," Nenam said as he kept walking. "I was talking to YOU Mr Dontgetinmyway!!" the Gnome yelled as he ran after ranger. In a move faster than the eyes could see, Nenam spun around, grabbed the Gnome by his little shirt and pulled him up to eye level. "Listen you little twit," Nenam spat at the Gnome, "I've lost my city, my girl, and about half my health, I don't need to put up with little ankle biters like you!" "You had better put me down if you know what is good for you." the Gnome said with a wiry smile. The light behind the little Gnome crackled for a second before a tiny Familiar, a mini-drake, appeared behind him.  
  
Nenam dropped the little wizard and fell back, stammering. "Y-y---y---- your.....him!! You---are---" "I'm Whizbang, you dolt, Whizbang Dustyboots." the wizard replied as he took one of his Gnome cookies out and took a bite from it. "Wh---what are YOU doing here??" Nenam stammered at the powerful Gnome. "I'm here to assist with this little problem you got here. The teleport pads? I made them work. Want to know why your town is standing? My spells." "Gee...thanks." Nenam said as he regained his composure. "No problem. But I hear you have a friend missing? I can find her for you."  
  
"Here we go," Whizbang said as he opened one of the spell books in the library of the Wizards of Felwithe. "lets look through these." "What...exactly am I looking for?" Nenam said as he opened a book and sneezed when the dust was disturbed. "Its obvious, isn't it??" the powerful wizard in a small package said half to Nenam, half to himself as he began to thumb through the decade old pages.  
  
"How about this?" Nenam asked as he slid a book in front of the gnome. "How to summon bread??" Whiz responded, "you let me do this, just carry books for me.." "Ah-ha!" The tiny gnome shouted as he stood in his chair, "Here it is!" The tiny wizard told Nenam of the spell to FIND Chioke. Finding her was half the problem, he explained, the other half would be getting there. They needed a tooth of a vampire, a stone from a meteorite, and the robe of a spectre.  
  
"A vampire....Mayong Mistmoore will do nicely." Whiz explained. Are you ready? Lets leave by sunrise.  
  
They started early, the all knowing Whizbang Dustyboots of Ak'Anon, and the Ranger Nenam Macharius of what was left of Kelethin. The Greater Faydark was serene, calmer than the battle that took place no less than 4 days earlier. Lesser Faydark, however...  
  
Another Undead Sprite fell to the ground with a *plunk* as Nenam was growing tired of the trip. Hoards of Undead were impededing them, everything from Sprites to Horrors. It was going slow but steady until..  
  
Nenam hit the ground, hard. He never saw the fireball coming, but he felt it. Whizbang reacted faster than Nenam falling, he was instantly casting his most powerful spell. Nenam could make out a tiny voice muttering some arcane words, and he knew where they came from; a brownie.  
  
Whiz was already starting his first spell when the ranger was hit, he could pick up the energy almost immediately. He saw the little brownie, smaller than himself (quite an accomplishment) about 20 feet away. The air around the Gnome crackled with energy, glowing all colors of the spectrum. The breeze began to pick up, and the clothes of the tiny Wizard began flapping violently. The ranger was up again, wondering what the hell happened, when the brownie hit him again, even harder this time. He hit a tree, propped up so he could see what this little guy was about to unleash on the menace of Lesser Faydark. The familiar was focused too, channeling his energy into the spell that was about to be cast. With a quiet mutter of a simple phrase, Whizbang cast.  
  
The tiny brownie was about to finish the little elf off, when he noticed the blinding light to his left. Mustering a quick spell to knock the little guy off his feet, the brownie fired at the light, but never saw what happened. All his miniature ears heard was a deafening boom, then nothing.  
  
Nenam awoke to the sound of a little gnome playing with his Tinkerer's Bag while munching on little cookies. A small spider popped out of the bag, running away as fast as its little legs could carry him. "Mail spider. Handy little thing." The little guy said. "What...what happened...?" Nenam said as he looked around. Then he saw. A tunnel had been blasted through most of the forest, killing anything and everything in its path. "That is what happens when those accursed brownies get in my way." The Wizard said as he took another bite out of a cookie. "But---but you killed the forest!! Why???" Nenam said with a frightened voice as he stood up, aghast at the destruction. "Simple. I didn't." Whiz said as he looked at what looked like a watch. "Look." No sooner had the words come out of his mouth than the forest grew red, then regenerated all the damage. "See? Cazic Thule rules this forest now. Hence the Undead. Now about that Vampire.." 


	3. Mayong Mistmoore

"I hear this guy is the big cheese of this place." Nenam said with weapons drawn as he walked through the passage into Mistmoore. "He is, and he's crafty, evil, and can and will kill you before your mind can process the fact that you're dead." "So, how do we get his tooth? Ask the tooth fairy?" Nenam inquired as he opened the door to the mansion. "No, she wouldn't give it to me if she had it." The tiny wizard replied as a dark elf maiden rushed them. With a quick sidestep, Nenam tripped the elf and sent her flying out the door, crashing into a gruesome statue of a gargoyle. "Pretty easy, if I do say so myself." the Ranger said as he continued deeper into the mansion of Mayong. "If only you knew….." Whiz said to no one as he ran to catch up.  
  
It was ok when they encountered the brownie. A few minutes ago, it was bad. Now, it was hell. The bold, or stupid, adventurers had become surrounded by undead. Nenam was hacking left, slicing right, casting his simple fireball spell left and right. Whiz was using his Area Effect spells to good effect, but there was a ward on the dammed mansion, preventing it from being destroyed or any magic powerful enough to kill Mayong to be used. But suddenly, the undead stopped swinging, stopped moving, stopped....killing. Then, in unison, they all backed up, forming a circle around the heroes.  
  
A zombie interrupted his meditation. He had news of a couple of heroes trapped inside the mansion. One was a Wood Elf, the other a Gnome. "Good, Gnomes always were so tasty," he thought to himself as Mayong licked his fangs in response. "Keep them there, I want to meet them myself." He would eat well tonight.  
  
Nenam's heart was pounding, no, racing as the undead stood there, motionless, staring at nothing in particular. Whiz was calm, however, despite the fact that he knew this was going to be bad. Very bad. The circle of zombies parted, and a tall cloaked figure walked into the circle, which closed behind him.  
  
His cloak was blood red, his boots were stone black, his leggings and tunic were as blue as the Vampires eyes were red. His hair was white, showing age. But his skin was dark blue, not showing any sign of aging. "I am Mayong Mistmoore," he spoke, "Who are you and what are you doing here?" "My name is Whizbang Dustyboots, this is my guard Nenam. I have a proposition for you. I have this here assassin spider. It poisons whoever you tell it to. I take it a vampire like you would want one to kill someone during the day that can't wait until the night. I want to wager it against you. A game of chance." "What do you want if I lose?" Asked Mayong. "A tooth from your own mouth," the Wizard replied, "Nothing more." "What is the bet then?" Whiz explained the bet to the Vampire. Whiz would hold a diamond in one hand, a piece of coal in another. All Mayong had to do was to guess where the diamond was, and he would get the diamond. "Fine, lets get this over with." said the Vampire. Whiz took two pieces of coal from his pocket and closed his hands around them, and held them in front of him. "Guess." the tiny caster said to the looming vampire. Mayong pointed to his right hand. "That one. I win." Quickly, Whiz focused his energy into his right hand, using it to pressurize the coal. The piece of coal was now a diamond, which he gladly showed to Mayong. "Wrong, I win." Mayong picked the gnome up with one hand, hissing in his face. "Impossible, I WIN. Kill them!" He commanded his minions as he flung the wizard into the wall.  
  
Nenam was into the air before Whiz left Mayong's fingertips. His fist slammed into the Vampires face, which wasn't defended in any way since he was overcome with rage. Mayong's head snapped back violently, his tooth flying backwards and sending the vampire to the ground. Nenam kept going, however, following the tooth to the ground.  
  
Whiz hit the wall, but his quick thinking threw up a mental shield before he hit. He was casting the evacuation spell before he hit the ground. All Nenam had to do was to wait.  
  
Mayong was on his feet instantly. How dare a Fier'Dal strike him, how dare him! Mayong spun around, searching for the infidel. He saw him, pocketing his former left fang. Mayong launched himself at him, drawing his dagger in mid-air, as he was about to strike....  
  
The air about Whiz crackled violently, with a portal opening around Nenam and Whiz. Wind was being sucked into them. The portals were stable, and they closed around them, but with another passenger, the Vampire. 


	4. The Oasis

Nenam hit the ground, rather hard, in fact. Then Whizbang landed on top of him. The plucky little Gnome ran away from the wizard platform, trying not to get landed on by Mayong.  
  
The vampire hit the searing hot granite, and instantly reacted badly to the hot desert sun. He froze in the natural light, giving Whiz just enough time to land a massive fireball on him. Mayong was no more.  
  
Nenam jumped to his feet just in time to see Mayong become part of the terrain. "How on Norrath did you land a spell like that?!" He yelled as he ran to the stunty wizard. "Simple," Whiz said, "Vampires don't like the sun. I knew he would freeze up like that, and the rest, as they say, is history." "Where....are we?" Nenam asked, disoriented by the heat. "The Southern Desert of Ro. We are going to head to the Oasis to get us a spectre."  
  
The Oasis was a popular place for the younger adventurers. The place crawls with Orcs and alligators of all sorts. What interested Whizbang and Nenam was the lake in the middle of the area. There was an island in the middle of the lake, on which there was a tower.  
  
Spectre D'Veer looked out over the lake. He hated the living things. They were so....lively. He was the leader of this island, bound her for all time by Innoruuk as punishment for falling in battle. He used to be General D'Veer, head Shadowknight of the 1st regiment of Neriak. Neriak was his home, and he died defending it. Now, he was Spectre D'Veer of the Oasis.  
  
Whizbang peered through his telescopic eye patch at the island. He saw the lesser spectres floating about the island, with their skull-masks and scythes that were at least 4 times his height. "Well, this will be fun." quipped the wizard as he clicked the eye patch back to normal. "Fun? How are we going to get a robe off of one of those spectres??" asked Nenam. "That's the fun part, you see, we can't use a robe from the lesser spectres. Only a chief spectre's robe will do. See that one at the top of the tower? That's the one we need." Nenam gazed into the tower, which was no hard task with his keen eyesight. There was the chief spectre, at the top. "Why don't you just blow up the whole island?" He asked. "Because if I did that, there would be no robe, now would there?" Answered Whizbang.  
  
The answer came all on its own. A young adventurer swam across the lake, alone, and unprotected. Instantly, all of the spectres chased after the poor soul, except for D'Veer. The lesser spectres could leave the island, which they did. D'Veer floated in his tower and watched. Alone.  
  
"Well. That was unexpected," Nenam said as the spectres chased the younger human. "Shall we?" The brave duo swam across the lake to the island. As they scaled the walls, Nenam felt the power of Innoruuk flowing around him. The last time he felt this power, he lost her....Chioke.......the girl Nenam was here to rescue. He wondered where she was, how Whizbang knew, and if she was ok.  
  
D'Veer sniffed the air. He smelt flesh....living things. He picked up his scythe as floated down to the ground outside his tower. He saw them, a puny Elf-thing and a stunty Gnome. "Who are you, and what are you doing on my island?!" He boomed to the pair. The small one spoke first; "We're here to get your robe, hope you don't mind us." "You will die, as many have done, in the name of Innoruuk!" D'Veer boomed at them as he launched himself at the Elf-thing.  
  
Nenam was surprised the spectre could move that fast. So surprised that he didn't even try to block its hand as it went for his throat. Almost instantly, Nenam was being held face-to-face with D'Veer, the skeletal hand around his throat and holding him 4 feet off the ground. At the same time, D'Veer swung the blunt end of his scythe at Whizbang. The very large weapon hit the tiny wizard in the chest, and sent him flying across the island, where he hit the ground and laid there, sprawled in the dust.  
  
"Now, your soul is MINE!" D'Veer growled into Nenam's face. 


	5. A Dragon?

Skyfyre Mountains. A nice little place in Kunark. Volcanic activity, sulfur in the air, and rather mountainous. Some say it got that way naturally. Some say it was the power of evil. Some say it was a meteorite. Nevertheless, the rocks here were from the sky, and Whizbang needed a good one.

The duo landed in the middle of the mountains. Nenam didn't like the place already, but apparently Whiz didn't care; he was running off towards the west. "Where are we going?" Nenam shouted to the quicker Gnome. "To find us that rock we need!" He shouted back.

Talendor gazed across the mountains. He loved it here. Being a Dragon wasn't so bad, he thought to himself. Then he saw two tiny things scurrying across his home. He spread his wings wide, he loved flying as well. Talendor took to the air, and chased the tiny duo. He quickly overtook them, flying over their heads by just inches. With a thunderous roar, he landed on the ground in front of them. "Who are you, and what are you doing here?" Talendor spoke to them. Whizbang responded in a language Nenam never heard before. He picked up some Elder Wurm, but couldn't make their conversation out. Suddenly, Talendor roared violently, and spat fire at Whizbang.

The fire was searing hot, but Whiz expected it. He quickly summoned up his shield to protect him. "Go! Find a rock that will work!" He shouted to Nenam. "How will I know which one will work?" Nenam yelled back. "You will know, just GO!" Whizbang yelled as he countered Talendor's fire with an Ice Bolt. The Dragon and the Wizard were at a stalemate; with the fire and the Ice Bolt colliding there was no clear victor as the collision point fluctuated back and forth between the two.

Nenam ran, as fast as he could. He had no idea what to look for. Whizbang's instrucitons weren't the clearest. Then he saw it. A massive globe, floating in mid-air. It was Norrath. He could see Antonica, Odus, Faydwer, Velious...Kunark. He didn't know this continent that well, but he could make out the Dreadlands, the ruins of the Combine Empire. He gazed closer. He could make out Skyfyre Mountains, or so he thought. He sensed...something from the area on the map. Out of instinct, he reached toward the mountains. The next thing he knew, Nenam was holding the part of the globe in his hands. It was pulsing with magic, he could feel it. He ran back to Whizbang, hoping he wasn't too late.

Whizbang strained under the magic. He wasn't used to stretching his spells out like this. Talendor and himself had been locked like this for 5 or 6 minutes. "You know, this is getting boring!" Whizbang shouted to the dragon. "I do not care, you shall die for trespassing!" Talendor answered back. The answer was what Whizbang was waiting for. With the dragon using his mouth to both attack and talk, the power was dramatically weakened. Whizbang used the opprotunity to retaliate. He poured all of his mana stores into the attack, and unleashed an Ice Comet.

Nenam crossed over the last ridge to where Whiz was. With no warning, a giant ball of ice shot overhead, missing him by a few feet. Talendor was dead. Nenam ran over to the little wizard, who was sitting and panting. "What...did...you...find?" Whiz got out in short breaths. "How about this?" Nenam said as he handed the piece of the globe to the wizard. "This is it! Excellent work!" The plucky little Gnome said as he jumped up. "We have to get to work immediately! To Erudin!" Whizbang cast another teleportation spell, and they were gone again.

Odus. The backwater place of Norrath. Just as remote as anything can be. There were two major cities, Panieel and Erudin. Panieel was the "Evil Erudin"; a city of Heretics. They studied Necromancy and worshipped the evil gods. Erudin was in contrast, studying the arts of wizardry and worshipping the good gods. But the most important, and appealing to Whizbang, was the Library of Erudin. Every book made in history was there, and soon, so would be the duo.

Nenam landed in a forest, amidst a set of Wizard Spires. Whizbang was right behind him. "Lets go!" the tiny wizard yelled as he ran off. "Don't you ever tell me where the heck we are going!" Nenam shouted back. 'That would ruin the surprise, wouldn't you think?" Whizbang yelled back.

Nenam had been to Felwithe before. The marvelous castle in the Faydark stood out amidst the forest like an Orc in a crowd of Gnomes. Felwithe paled in comparison to Erudin. While the High Elves used stone for their castle, the Erudites used polished white marble for theirs. The architecture enveloped Nenam as he entered the city. It was beautiful. He would have to show Chioke. Nenam's thoughts flashed back to Kelethin. The final battle...the teleport pads...Chioke...

Whizbang opened a tome written in Elder Dragon. It told of ancient portal-making techniques, including the one Whiz was looking for. He went to a scribing tablet, made specifically for the task he was going to try. He spread the spectre's robe over the tablet and put the meteorite onto the robe. Taking the vampire's tooth from his pocket, Whizbang charged it with magical energy. Then, he started carving into the rock. He carved ancient and present runes, from Human to Elven to Dragon symbols. Nenam spoke: "What ar--" "Shh!" Whizbang interrupted. "I need complete concentration.." He continued carving. The meteorite was becoming a Rune. A very intricate rune, at that.

Nenam visited the local smith while Whiz was carving the rune. He looked over the weapons and was disappointed. Normal, run of the mill weapons that he used in his training. "Don't you have anything better than these?" He asked the smith. "Yeah," the smith replied," but I don't want to sell them to the likes of you." Nenam was surprised. "Fine, gimmie this one, a smithy hammer, and the use of your forge." "Fine, here ya go." The smith said as he handed Nenam the materials. Nenam walked over to the forge, and started working. He was an avid smith, and could make a normal sword in no time. This one, however, was different.

Before, the sword was nothing more than a sharp piece of metal. Now, it was an instrument of Tunare. One that Nenam had made himself. He looked over at the owner as he left. "Thanks for the help!" He said as he walked out of the smith's, new swore in hand. When he got back to the library, he started training with it, swinging it in very advanced patterns that very few have seen.

Whizbang walked outside the Library to the courtyard. "Done!" he said as he placed the Rune, wrapped in the robe, on the ground. He backed up a few steps, raised his arms, and began casting. The spell crossed several languages, required a vast amount of energy, and was very long. After an hour, Nenam could see no change in the area around Whizbang. A crowd was growing. A tiny point of light was showing, at first, but it grew larger and larger, until it dwarfed the tiny wizard standing next to it. Suddenly, Whizbang's casting changed pitch and volume. It became much louder and much deeper, as if coming from a god, or a very large source of power.

The portal was nothing but a giant white half-circle until then. When Whizbang changed his casting, the portal changed drastically. The portal seemed to explode with radiant energy from the center outward, blowing out every window in Erudin. The the portal stabilized, with blue energy streaming around the opening. "Shall we?" Whizbang said to Nenam. "Lets." Nenam said back. And with those words, the hero's disappeared into the portal. 


	6. To Risk it All

Nenam landed on an island. It was one massive island, with no other ones in sight. Unlike a normal island surrounded by water, this island was surrounded by air. "Where are we?" He asked Whizbang, who had just landed himself. "This," Whizbang answered, "is the Higher Plane of Air. Also known as Innoruuk's home. This is where Chioke is, all we have to do now is find where in here she is at."

Chioke struggled against the bonds that held her to the altar. She wanted to be back home, away from all of this. She didn't hear much from the wizards, but from what she did, she didn't like. Apparently, Innoruuk is planning to invade the Plane of Growth and kill Tunare. To do that, they need a sacrifice. Chioke didn't need to hear the rest to understand the plan; she was to die to start the invasion.

"There she is!" Nenam exclaimed as he spotted the altar. He saw Chioke, bound to a bloodstained altar. Several robed Dark Elves were around her, chanting, casting. There was a Shadowknight with them. A very very powerful one. So powerful, Nenam could feel his presence.

The Shadoknight stood near the altar. He was the norm for any male Dark Elf, 5 feet, blue skin, white hair, blood red eyes. He was clad in Legendary Darkforge armor, made from bones of ancient dragons. The pieces overlapped each other with large sharp edges, making a very defensive and deadly suit of armor. It was colored as black as night, and resonated with pure Hate.

"Th--tha----thats Lord Neriak..." Whizbang stuttered, "this...can't be good." Nenam was shaken by the mighty wizard's sudden breakdown of composure. "He's...he's not that bad...is he?" Nenam asked. "Its Lord Neriak! He founded the city of Neriak! He led the battle of Bloody Kithicor! He founded the alliance with the Orcs! He is Innoruuks right hand man! Yes, he is that bad!" Whizbang shouted at Nenam. "Ah. I see. Bad." Nenam stuttered.

Lord Neriak drew the sacrificial dagger. It was at least a foot long, with a curved and serrated blade. It was etched with the unholy runes of Innoruuk, and meant for a sacrifice of a caliber such as this. "It will be put to good use today," Neriak said to himself as he made his way to the altar.

"What is he doing? He's...he's going to sacrifice Chioke! He can't do that!" Nenam said as he cast his Scale of Wolf spell on himself and took off sprinting towards the altar. "No!" Whizbang shouted as he ran after Nenam, even though he had no chance of catching up.

Neriak saw the Elf approaching. He decided two sacrificies would do just as well today. As he put the dagger on the altar, he drew his personal sword. Innoruuk's Curse. In his hands, it was more powerful than any weapon imaginable. It was almost 4 feet long, a dull black, and pulsated with the same power of Hate that his armor did. He waited to recieve the charge.

Nenam drew his custom sword as he sprinted towards Neriak. He didn't care about tactics, about how he held the sword, all he cared about was Chioke. Even with the tiny jabbering, angry, and powerful Whizbang behind him, he didn't care about anything but his Chioke. Even with Innoruuk's Chosen standing in his way, he didn't care. Now, he would prove it. Nenam leapt into the air, sword raised to strike.

Neriak caught Nenam without even flinching. He sneered in the Ranger's face, "You're puny attack has failed! Prepare to be sacrificed to the Prince of Hate!" Then Chioke saw Nenam. Her eyes lit up, her spirits lifted. Words weren't needed to exchange how they felt towards each other. "You took her, and I've come to get her. You will give her back, and I will kill you. It is not your choice!" Nenam yelled as his body erputed with energy as he broke free of Neriak's grasp. Immediately Nenam began his attack, swinging at Neriak with all of his fury. Neriak parried and dodged every attack, countered and attacked with every chance. Suddenly, the ground shook violently as a creature opened a portal and stepped through it into the Plane. It was Innoruuk himself.

Whizbang skidded to a halt near Nenam and Neriak. He saw Innoruuk open the portal and leap at Nenam, intent on killing him. Whizbang was prepared for something like this, however, and let an ice bolt loose at the Prince of Hate. It landed squarely in the chest of the Prince, sending him flying into the Altar. "Chioke!" Nenam shouted as the altar burst into pieces and the wizards surrounding it were killed by their own god. After slamming into the stone altar, and several of his followers, Innoruuk leapt to his feet and literally flew at Whizbang, hands afire with the pure energy of Hate itself.

Nenam was in the fight of his life. He and Neriak were swinging with very mighty swings, cracking the very ground with their power. Suddenly, Neriak gained the upper hand, forcing Nenam back, losing ground with every swing.

Whizbang wasn't exactly as powerful as Innoruuk, but he was strong enough to put up a good fight. Innoruuk was dodging back and forth, making a spell stand-off impossible. Whizbang couldn't match the speed of the god, so he relied on Shadowstepping and casting his fasted ice bolt, stepping and casting, but not landing any attacks. Innoruuk could not keep up with the tiny Gnome, and could not get close enough to him to attack him.

Nenam and Neriak's swords clanged together between them. "You will not win, you know that!" Neriak sneered. "We'll see about that!" Nenam said as he parried the sword of Neriak and started an attack of his own. He swung ferociously, attacking with the power and wrath of nature. Neriak attempted to counted with an upward parry, but Nenam saw it coming, faked the attack, and drove his sword into Neriak's chest. Dark red blood began to run down his armor, staining the ground below. He gasped for a second, then fell over backwards onto the ground, Nenam's sword covered in blood.

"Chioke," Nenam said softly as he walked over to the remains of the altar. He saw her body, her flowing brown hair, her glistening blue eyes closed, and that smile was still on her face. He felt for a pulse. Nothing. She was gone. "N--no..." Nenam stuttered as he held Chioke close to him. A single tear ran down his face, pausing for a second on his chin, then dropping onto Chioke's face. Suddenly, Whizbang came skidding on his back past Nenam, sliding to a halt next to him.

Innoruuk walked over to Nenam. He laughed with unholy power. "I hope that is not your best effort, Fier'Dal. I was hoping for a fight. Now, you will just die!" With those last words, Innoruuk backed off, with skeletons rising in his place. There were a few at first, then alot, then hundreds of them. Then with a roar coming from all of them at once, they charged Nenam. He was attacking instantly, cutting down the skeletons with the speed of a man backed by nature. The bones were starting to pile up, making the ground difficult to stand on. Nenam tripped on one of the bones, and left himself open for the attack of one of the skeletons, who had his sword raised to kill. As he plunged his sword downward...

The staff smashed into the side of the skeleton's head, cracking its skull and sending it flying. Nenam was surprised, who would have helped him? It was Chioke, alive and well, with the fire in her eyes of a woman driven by love. With a single look between the two, the fighting continued. The skeletons began to drop rapidly, with the duo of Elves winning by a wide margin.

WIth a slice, the last skeleton fell. Instantly, Nenam dropped his sword and hugged Chioke, who gladly hugged him back. "You came for me, why?" Chioked asked Nenam. "Well, I did it because..." Nenam started. "Because...why?" Chioke interrupted. With a smile, and gazing into Chioke's eyes, he said "Because, Chioke, I love you." With a broad smile, and on the verge of crying, Chioke said back, "Nenam, I love you too."

A blood-curdling scream shattered the moment, spinning Nenam around towards the source. It was Neriak, sprinting at them, Innoruuk's Curse pointed at them, ready to kill 2 more people. With a natural instinct, Nenam pushed Chioke away from him as Neriak neared. The massive two-handed sword plunged into the front of Nenam's chest, exiting out his back. Weakened by the loss of blood, Neriak collapsed after the attack, leaving Nenam to fall backwards with the sword embedded in his chest. Chioke was at his side immediatley. "Nenam...why?" Nenam chuckled slightly, smiled, and said "Because I love you." With those words, Nenam Macharius closed his eyes as his body went limp.

"What a waste of energy." Innoruuk said as he walked over to Chioke. His hand closed around her throat and lifted her off the ground. "Now you will join him, prepare to die!' Whizbang's Ice Bolt slammed into Innoruuk's head after that statement, sending him reeling from the blast. "Another one?" Innoruuk boomed as he turned towards Whizbang, Chioke still in his grip. "You all are starting to get annoying!" he raged. Whizbang summoned all of the mana he had, and focused it into one enormous attack. With a booming roar from the plucky little Gnome, he loosed his attack. Innoruuk knocked the attack aside like it was a child's playtoy. As Innoruuk readied his attack, he raised his arm to deliver the spell to finish Whizbang.

With a flash of light, that arm became separated from Innoruuk's body. Then the other arm, the one holding Chioke, was separated. Then another flash of light, and there was a sword embedded in Innoruuk's chest. It was Nenam's sword. Standing in front of Innoruuk was Nenam with Neriak's sword still in him. Innoruuk looked at the sword in his chest, then fell over backwards. "Whizbang, get Chioke out of here. Now." Nenam said with a grim look on his face, starting at Innoruuk's unmoving body. "What about you? What are you going to do?" Whizbang said as he picked Chioke up off of the ground.

"I'm not coming. Innoruuk is going to regenerate, and I have to stop him when he does."

"How do you plan to do that?" Whizbang asked. Nenam looked back at his now friend, and said; "Get her out of here. Fast." With that said, Nenam turned back towards Innoruuk's body. The air about Nenam began to resonate with energy. Whizbang knew what Nenam was doing, and sprinted away from him, towards the evacuation point.

Chioke awoke on the shoulder on Whizbang. "Wh---where's Nenam?" She asked groggily. "Back there." Whizbang said, indicating the direction of the two. She saw Nenam standing over Innoruuk's body. He looked extremely different, the air was waving about him, the mana was overflowing from Nenam, flowing about him. "What is he doing?" Chioke asked. "Well," Whizbang began to explain, "you know about mana, right? Well, people can control how much mana they have due to many things. Usually, it is with experience. WIth others, it is enchanting items. But a few, a very few can use their feelings to dictate their mana. Nenam is one of those. He is tapping into his love for you and converting that into mana. The overflowing mana is harmless, however, if Nenam converts that mana into pure energy, his body won't handle it. He'll detonate."

"He can't! No!" Chioke began to scream and hit Whizbang. "We have to stop him!" "We can't. We are leaving." Whizbang stopped outside of the ward covering the island and began to cast his evacuation spell. With one final look, Chioke gazed at Nenam. "No..." she muttered as the portal took her.

Nenam felt the portal from and fade away. He could finish his job now. Innoruuk's body had regenerated, and he was beginning to stir when Nenam was almost done. When Innoruuk stood up, Nenam was behind him, taking him into a submissive hold. "Chioke...for you." Then, Nenam converted a tiny ammount of mana into energy, which set off the reaction. With a blinding light, the Higher Plane of Air was obliterated, Innoruuk was killed, and Nenam gave his life for the girl he loved. 


End file.
